pudgetronI am realizing that I picked possibly the worst time to start writing again, as I failed to see the seasonal lull in new content being released. So I took another short break before doing this one in order to firm up the details on some things. What are those things, you ask? Why, it’s the SPRING 2015 ANIME SEASON! For the first time in a while, I’m actually excited about stuff that’s coming out this season; that’s not to say the past year has all been bad shows, but nothing blew my socks off. So here’s my list of a few of the things to look out for this season, in no particular order:
Gintama is the story of a down on his luck samurai, Gintoki, who was once one of the greatest swordsmen in the country. He had been among the samurai to take up arms against the foreign invaders who came to Japan during the Edo period of its history, but had given up on the resistance as he despaired at how hopeless it was to fight against the invaders’ superior technology and, soon enough, the resistance was crushed. Gintoki now lives as a poor jack-of-all-trades, taking whatever job he can to get by. Also, did I mention that in this version of history, the foreign invaders are literally aliens? No? Well they are. Aliens.
This is one of those shows that has very little in the way of substance, but is structured so well and the gags are so well done, that it doesn’t matter. Did you not get this was a comedic show from that description? My bad. The show revolves around a large cast of weirdos, Gintoki included, and the various odd jobs that the few employees of his company actually get requests to complete. His employees consist of Shinpachi Shimura, a samurai-in-training, Kagura, a young alien girl who is more hardy than her appearance might suggest, and Sadaharu, Kagura’s giant pet dog that chews on everyone. Gintama went through a series of runs and cancellations, starting in 2006, that will be continuing this season
Airing April 8
You know magical girl shows? How they feature young girls using the powers of truth and love to solve various magical based problems, and are generally targeted towards a shoujo audience? Say hello the the Lyrical Nanoha franchise, the only exclusively seinen magical girl series that I can think of. What makes the series special in my mind is the attention to detail that the creators have to the things that matter; characters, motivation, and the bare-knuckle, knockdown fights between grade schoolers with magical powers. I exaggerate for comedic effect, but not as much as you might think. Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha Vivid is about the adoptive daughter of the original heroine, Vivio, as she enters a magical girl academy. While not as heavy as far as subject matter as the other installments of the franchise, the series promises to have its fair share of magical martial arts, and I’m sure it will be no less entertaining.
Given my experience with the rest of the franchise, which was shockingly deep and thought provoking, I will certainly be giving this one a shot. If you’re unfamiliar with the franchise, there are three animated series already that are well worth the watch. The show may look real cute on the surface, but you will find it has hidden depths is you’re willing to look.
Airing April 3
Ryuu Yamada is not what one would call a “model student”; he’s chronically late, at the bottom of all his classes, and looks the part of a delinquent as well. When Ururu Shiraishi, the school’s beautiful top student, slips on the stairs above him, he naturally tries to catch her and he ends up on the bad end of a head-on collision. He wakes up in the infirmary dazed and a little sore, but more or less fine until he gets out of bed to find he seems to be balanced oddly. Catching a glimpse of himself in the mirror, he realizes that he and Shiraishi have switched bodies! And so begins Yamada’s adventure delving into the weird happenings at his school.
Yamada-kun to 7-nin no Majo is written by Miki Yoshikawa, a former assistant of Fairy Tail‘s Hiro Mashima, and you can tell from the art style and the slapstick comedy almost immediately. This particular series has been animated before as a short promotional video for the manga, so you can get an idea of what the show might end up looking like and while not having the most amazing depth in it’s story, it is well worth your time to check it out.
Airing April 12
Yukihara Soma lives with his father and helps out at their small, but locally popular, diner. Soma’s father is praised for the quality of the food that comes out of the kitchen by the customer’s and Soma is striving to surpass that before he takes over the family business. He constantly challenges his father to cooking contests in their downtime and just as constantly loses, but he is undeterred from his goal and each defeat only serves as fuel toward his ambition. Then one day, he finds a note from his father that going out for a while to work in one of the premiere restaurants in France, and is instructed to close down the shop and go to one Totsuki Academy, his father’s alma mater; a school that boasts a 1% graduation rate, but those 1% infallibly go on to be the greatest chefs in the world.
Shokugeki no Soma is an ecchi series. Let’s just get that out of the way right now. It is unique, however, in that it knows when to use its fanservice for optimum effect, and it almost exclusively happens during tastings to show how orgasmically good all the food is. With a solid cast of characters and pretty decent pacing and development, this is certainly a show that I was excited to hear about.
Airing April 3
For those familiar with the Haruhi Suzumiya franchise, The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan is a spin-off series that takes place in the alternate dimension of the Disappearance movie, where everyone is normal and you basically get the same stuff but without all the supernatural factors. For those unfamiliar with the Haruhi Suzumiya frachise, it’s a slice of life comedy show about a lovable cast of oddballs in a high school literature club (and also you should go watch the Haruhi Suzumiya franchise).
Okay, so I am probably one of the most biased people when it comes to this franchise, so I will try to avoid gushing all over the page and let the show (hopefully) speak for itself. If you enjoyed the original series even remotely as much as I did, you will love this series; even if you haven’t seen the original series, I still think this works well as a standalone piece of work. I cannot wait for this to start to air.
Airing April 3
Add comment